California Department of Transportation

STATE PERSONNEL BOARD UPHOLDS CALTRANS' FIRING OF SUPERVISOR

SACRAMENTO - The California State Personnel Board on Thursday sided with an Administrative Law Judge whose proposed decision upheld Caltrans' firing of former Caltrans supervisor Brian Liebich who had asked the panel to give him his job back.

"Accountability matters at Caltrans," said Caltrans Director Malcolm Dougherty. "Californians depend on Caltrans every single day, and we expect employees to do the right thing. Mr. Liebich put his own desires ahead of the public good so Caltrans took action to terminate his employment. "

Liebich was fired from his job in November 2011 for alleged misuse of state resources and approving falsified overtime. He was also the supervisor of Duane Wiles, the former Caltrans technician who falsified foundation test results on state highway structures. Caltrans was successful in separating Wiles from state service in 2012.

As revelations of Wiles' activities came to light, Caltrans conducted a thorough review of nearly two decades of foundation testing and delivered hundreds of pages of findings to the state Legislature, which confirmed Wiles' neglect of duty, but also verified that all structures involved are safe.

For a copy of the Board's decision, please contact patricia.mcconahay@calhr.ca.gov at the California Department of Human Resources.